


The Kids are Alright

by sophisticus



Series: Pink Lightning [19]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-13
Packaged: 2020-10-17 03:01:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,413
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20613869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sophisticus/pseuds/sophisticus
Summary: The story begins the same as usual, two parents making a foolish deal with a local mafia boss, and their child is left behind in the chaos. But this time, the Marines get there first.Kitty Mamakoto is picked up by Vice Admiral Garp in the aftermath of her parents' arrest and imprisonment. He does with her what he would do for any other child in need of a home: dumps them on the unsuspecting folks in Windmill Village of the Goa Kingdom. There, she meets a trio of rowdy boys, and despite a rough introduction, the four of them become fast friends. But the island has dangers of its own for the kids, and the mafia of Kitty's past isn't as far behind her as she'd like to think.





	1. Loathe at First Sight

When Garp first came to Makino and asked her to foster a young girl from a neighboring island, she’d been hesitant to agree. Makino was barely twenty five herself - lots of people her age were already parents, but raising a child wasn’t something she’d really planned. “I’m not refusing, but why don’t you ask Dadan-san? You asked her to take care of Ace-kun and Luffy-kun,” she said carefully, glancing at the eleven year old who sat sullenly on a stool, across the bar from where Makino and Garp now stood. Garp just scratched the side of his nose dismissively.

“Dadan’s got enough on her plate, with those two monsters bringing home that third boy. If I ask her to take any more kids on, she might shoot me dead.” Garp gave a booming laugh, and the young girl shot him an annoyed look. “Anyway, it’s just until things calm down. There’s gonna be a trial for the girl’s parents. Who knows, maybe they’ll be released and this will be just an overnight stay!” And with that, the vice admiral waved cheerfully and disappeared out the door.

Makino put her hands on her hips and shook her head. Luffy’s grandpa had always been like this, but this was the first time she’d been on the receiving end. But if what he’d said about this girl’s parents was true, she really should do her best to make it as easy on the child as possible.

“Okay, it looks like you’re staying here with me for a while after all,” Makino called over to the girl. “I don’t know if Garp-san told you, but I’m Makino. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Will you tell me your name?” SHe held out her hand, which the girl eyed warily and did not take.

The girl huffed a breath to get her bangs out of her eyes. “Kitty,” she grumbled after a second. “Do I have to stay here?”

Makino withdrew her hand and took a seat next to her. “I’m afraid so. Garp-san said it may take a while for things to get sorted out with your parents. He thinks this is the best thing we can all do in the meantime.” She glanced around, only just now realizing something. “Where are your things? Did you bring any clothes, or a toothbrush?”

“My house was burned down in front of me by pirate mafia thugs after they dragged away my parents,” Kitty said deadpan. “I didn’t have time to pack an overnight bag.”

Makino blinked several times before speaking. “Oh. Well. I see. In that case, we’ll need to go get you some things. Are you hungry? We can get some food while we’re out.” She grabbed a pen and a scrap of paper from behind the bar, jotting things down. Toothbrush, clothes, shoes...

Kitty grumbled again a bit before answering. “I could eat,” she admitted. “But I don’t have any money.”

Makino reached over and took Kitty’s hand in her own. “You don’t have to pay. I’m taking care of you now, so that’s my responsibility,” she said firmly. Makino smiled warmly. Kitty didn’t quite return the smile, but she did relax just a little. It would do for now. “Come on, there’s a noodle place across town I think you might like.”

—-

Kitty glanced again at the basket full of clothes Makino carried over her arm. The two of them had gone clothes and toiletries shopping after lunch just like Makino had promised, and now headed out of town and deep into the jungle, but something was bothering Kitty. “I don’t need so many clothes,” she blurted out. “And why are we going this way? I thought you live back that way.”

Makino gave a quiet sigh. “You’re right. Some of these clothes aren’t for you. I’m going to trust you with a secret,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper.

Despite herself, curiosity killed the Kitty, and she dropped her voice to match Makino’s conspiratorial tone. “What secret?” she whispered back. Makino made a show of looking around to make sure they were alone, even though nobody else had come this far outside of the village.

“There are three boys about your age who live deep in this jungle, but nobody’s allowed to know about them. So I sometimes bring them clothes and new shoes and bandaids and other things they can’t get on their own very easily.” Makino gestured to the basket with a smile. “You happened to arrive on new-clothes day.”

“Oh. Well, that’s a stupid secret,” Kitty said dismissively. Makino suppressed a surprised laugh. “Are they the boys that old man talked about? If they’re secret, he’s not doing a good job about it. He told me about them on the way here.”

“Garp-san is...an interesting man,” Makino answered carefully, still smiling. “He doesn’t always take things as seriously as he should. He’re getting close. Just up around here somewhere.”

The two of them had delved far enough into the jungle that the trees had completely obscured Windmill village. Kitty wasn’t worried - she could likely defend herself against whatever snakes and stuff lurked in the underbrush - but unfamiliar territory was never a good thing. However, the trees and brush soon cleared, revealing a worn but sturdy house. Kitty could hear lively chatter from multiple people inside.

Makino cupped her hands around her mouth. “Dadan-san! Luffy-kun! Ace-kun! Sabo-kun!” she called. “I’m here with clothes for the boys!”

The voices inside were rapidly drowned out by an approaching clatter, part of which Kitty realized was a shrill voice. “Maaaaakiiiiinooooooooo!!!” the high pitched, ecstatic voice hollered, followed closely by a short boy with wide eyes and a wider grin. He shot over to Makino and latched himself onto her leg, talking a mile a minute. “OhheyMakinosothedaybeforeyesterdayAceandSabofoundthisHUGEpurplemushroomanddaredmetoeatitsoofcourseIdidandittastedSOyummybutthenmyhandsswelledupandturnedpurpletooandtheyjustLAUGHEDevenwhenmytongheturnedpurpleandswelleduptooandIthinkIalmostdiedbutDadanhadsomeantidotesoeverythingisokayafterallandIkindawannafindthatmushroomagainbecauseitwassoyummy,” the boy paused for a huge breath, “andthedaybeforeTHATwewentand-”

“Okay, okay,” Makino laughed, patting the boy’s head fondly. “You’ll have plenty of time to tell me all about it, I promise.”

The kid had been followed outside by a huge woman with tightly curled orange hair and a cigarette, trailing behind two other boys. One was blond, but the other with freckles looked like the first chatty kid’s older brother. The latter gave Kitty a suspicious glance before looking back at Makino.

“I swear to god Garp had better not be leaving me another fucking kid to watch,” the large woman snapped. “I’ve already been blackmailed into watching three whole monsters more than I ever wanted, I’m not gonna turn into a goddamn day care-”

“No, no, no,” Makino interrupted hastily. “That’s not it at all! Kitty-chan is fostering with me for a while, and we came here right after I bought her some new clothes and things today. I promise.”

Dadan settled down at that, but she still huffed grumpily as she stomped back inside.

“Speaking of clothes, I got you boys some new shirts. I swear you three grow an inch between visits,” Makino continued, finally pulling the youngest boy off her.

“Great! I accidentally ripped one of my last shirts yesterday,” the blond boy piped up. “Thank you.”

“You know, it’s polite to introduce yourself when you meet someone new,” Makino said gently, gesturing to Kitty who just shoved her hands deeper in her pockets.

The freckled boy glanced over before straightening and offering a short, stiff bow. “Hi, I’m Ace. Nice to meet you,” he said somewhat flatly.

The blond boy grinned, revealing a missing tooth. “And I’m Sabo!” he said cheerfully. 

The smallest boy, who she could now see had a scar under his eye and a too-large straw hat perched on his head, turned from where Makino was now sizing the new shirts against him. “I’m Luffy!” he exclaimed. “I’m gonna be king of the pirates!”

Kitty froze. “You wanna be a pirate?”

“Well duh. But I’m gonna be KING of the pirates. Which is WAY cooler,” Luffy said firmly. He flexed his nonexistent biceps. “I’m gonna be the STRONGEST pirate!”

Ace snorted. “You can’t even throw a proper punch, how do you expect to become pirate king?” he said scathingly. Luffy shot him a cute little scowl.

“Shut up! I’ll do it! I’ll beat you AND Sabo someday, you know!” he retorted.

“Pirates are trash and people who want to be pirates are trash too,” Kitty interrupted. Makino, Ace, Sabo, and Luffy all turned to stare at her, and she met their stares unflinchingly. “And if you want to be the king of that trash heap, then you’re even stupider than you look.”

“Hey, that’s my brother,” Ace said angrily. He stepped in between Kitty and Luffy, holding his arm out behind him protectively. “You can’t talk to him like that.”

“I’ll talk to him however I want, especially if he’s gonna be a delusional idiot. King of the pirates? More like king of the morons. Same difference,” she sneered.

“Shut the hell up,” Ace spat. “Pirates are freer than you’ll ever be.”

“Kitty-chan, Ace-kun-” Makino started, but both of them ignored her.

“Freedom isn’t worth screwing over innocent people,” Kitty shot back. “Stop being a stupid kid and wake up. Pirates just like to kill and burn and that’s it.”

“You’re a kid too, dumbass!”

“Hey, Ace, maybe you should calm down,” Sabo interrupted, smiling placatingly and setting a hand on Ace’s shoulder. “It’s not that important.”

“I don’t back down from fights,” Ace snapped back, shrugging off Sabo’s hand. He walked over to Kitty and thrust his face into hers so hard that their foreheads smacked together. "You gonna back up all that with more than words?”

Kitty snorted and raised her chin, staring down at his furious face and fully enjoying the entire inch of height she had on him. “I don’t have anything to prove to you,” she said scathingly. She didn’t stop to see his reaction; she whirled around and headed back into the jungle the way they’d come. Over her shoulder, she called to Makino, “I’m going back into town, see you when you’re done here.”

...

Kitty sat alone in the bar, glaring at the wall for almost two hours before Makino came back. While they’d just met earlier that morning, she could already read the woman well enough to know she was unhappy about something, and she had a pretty good guess as to what. Kitty sighed, tipping her head back to stare at the ceiling. “I’m not gonna apologize to them,” she said before Makino could say anything. “I meant what I said.”

Makino pursed her lips as she sat across from Kitty. “I know,” she sighed. “I don’t know everything that happened with your parents, but I know you’re justified in your feelings about pirates. Honestly, I wouldn’t blame you if you felt the same about marines.”

“I do,” Kitty said bluntly. “They  _ all _ suck.”

_ “But, _ that doesn’t mean you should’ve said all that the way you did,” Makino continued firmly. “Those boys have done nothing to you, and Luffy is only seven. You’ve got a responsibility to be a good person to them, especially to one so young.”

“Responsibility? No I don’t,” Kitty shot back. “I’m only eleven, my responsibility is getting back to Mama and Daddy.”

“Everybody has a responsibility to be polite, and everybody needs to treat children well,” Makino said calmly. “It’s part of society. It does no good to let your temper get the better of you.”

“Yeah, well, tell that to the pirates who took my parents and burned down my house,” Kitty muttered. “And that stupid freckly boy, while you’re at it. He could use some manners.”

“Ace-kun? He’s actually requested manners lessons and is doing well,” Makino said thoughtfully. “Oh, I can’t leave you alone here while I go do that. You’ll have to go with me.”

“What? No,” Kitty said automatically. “I’m not going back there and dealing with those idiots.”

“Kitty-chan, don’t call them idiots.” For the first time, Makino’s soft and honey-sweet voice hardened with resolution. “I understand you have good reason to hate pirates but those boys are  _ not  _ pirates, no matter how much they want to be. And I know you don’t want to be here, but as long as you’re with me you need to keep your temper in check. I won’t abide name-calling in my home.”

Kitty grumbled, but relented under Makino’s firm stare. “Okay, fine,” she groaned. “I won’t call them stupid idiotic morons anymore.”

_ “Kitty-chan.” _

“Okay, okay!”


	2. Dangerous Territory

For the most part, Kitty spent the next few weeks in Windmill Village. Makino ran the bar where Kitty spent most of her time, drinking juice and listening to the chatter of the patrons. It was pretty boring, but it was safe. The frequent trips into the jungle of the Colubo mountains, however, were much more interesting. The jungle turned out to be actually, properly wild. Huge snakes, wild boars, and a glimpse of a tiger once all made Kitty stick close to Makino, who assured her that the path they took was safe. Kitty wasn’t sure she believed her, but they hadn't run into any problems on that path, so who knew.

What really made her dislike the jungle, though, were the three boys living at that bandit Dadan’s place. Sabo, at least, was nice to her. Luffy hadn’t seemed put off by her insults - if anything, he seemed even more determined in his goal. At first, Kitty had thought it was spite, but he seemed too straightforward and dumb to be spiteful. Ace, however, was a complete  _ shit _ . They argued every single time they saw each other, to the point that Makino and Sabo would intervene. Kitty didn’t  _ care _ , exactly, but it was annoying that he’d taken it all so personally.

And every day, Kitty waited for news on her parents. They were alive, she knew that much, but that was all. That old man Garp hadn’t told her much of anything, but she had a feeling that it was less about protecting her and more about not caring enough to talk about it. Makino tried calling to ask, but the snail just kept ringing with no answer.

“Kitty-chan?” Makino peeked into Kitty’s room, tapping her knuckles on the door frame. Kitty looked up from her book. “I’m afraid I have to go out of town for a couple of days.”

Kitty blinked once, then returned to her book. “Oh. Okay. Bye then.”

“I can’t leave you here alone, so I’ve asked Dadan to let you stay with her in the meantime,” Makino continued. “She’s rough but-”

“What?” Kitty blurted out. She scrambled to her feet. “Why? I don’t wanna have to stay with those...those  _ boys.” _

“Kitty-chan, I trust her completely,” Makino said firmly. “It’s only for two nights.  _ Please  _ try and get along with the boys. They’re good kids, really.”

“Yeah right,” Kitty muttered. “Do I have to?”

“Yes. I'm sorry, I know you don’t like it, but I will be very busy and can’t take you with me.”

“Okay,  _ fine.” _

—-

To her credit, they made it nearly the entire two days before she and Ace got into the fight. It was the same old argument: Kitty said Ace was stupid, Ace retorted that no, Kitty was the stupid one, et cetera et cetera, but without Makino’s supervision the two of them now had bloody noses and rapidly-developing shiners. Luffy hadn’t even noticed the fight; he’d been too busy geeking out over a huge beetle he’d found. Sabo had long since given up on trying to keep them from fighting, so he settled for giving Ace and Kitty disapproving glances.

Now, waiting for Makino, Kitty sat on the doorstep, staring out into the jungle while absentmindedly picking away dried blood from under her nose. She liked Makino a lot, but she wasn’t looking forward to the lecture she was gonna get. 

“Makino’s gonna be mad.” Kitty turned to see Ace standing there, staring down at her. His own black eye was turning an impressive shade of purple, she noticed with a detached sense of pride. She scoffed and turned away.

“Who cares,” Kitty retorted. “It’s not like she’s my mom.”

“At least you  _ have _ a mom,” he muttered, sitting next to her.

“What do you want?” Kitty said bluntly. She turned to face him fully. “We’re not friends, and we just beat the hell out of each other.”

Ace huffed. “It’s not like you can’t be friends with the people you beat up, just ask Luffy and Sabo. I was  _ gonna  _ say you fight good, but if you’re gonna be an asshole about it, then never mind.”

Kitty gingerly touched her black eye. “Maybe so. That doesn’t make you less of an ass,” she pointed out.

“You’re  _ both  _ asses.” Kitty and Ace turned to see Sabo frowning down at both of them. “Come on, Ace, let her hang out with us.”

“No!” Ace and Kitty said at the same time.

“I don’t want her at our fort,” Ace said hotly.

“I don’t wanna see you any more than I have to!” Kitty shot back. “Sabo’s nice at least but you’re such a shit, it’s a wonder you have friends at all.”

“Alright, alright, let’s all calm down, okay? Come on, Luffy wants to go hunt crocodiles again,” Sabo interrupted. “Sorry, Kitty, I’d invite you to the fort if it weren’t for this stubborn guy.”

“Whatever,” Kitty sniffed. “I’m not interested in a gross boy’s fort anyway.”

Sabo gave her a look that clearly said he didn’t believe her, but let it go. “C’mon, Ace.”

“Yeah, I’m coming.”

—-

Almost a week passed before Makino took Kitty back out to the Colubo mountains. Kitty wasn’t exactly  _ happy  _ to see Ace, Sabo, and Luffy - she and Ace butted heads every single time they saw one another, making it hard to call them friends - but there weren’t any other kids around her age in Windmill Village. The boys were better than nothing, she grudgingly admitted. That’s why, when she got there only to be told by a cranky Dadan that the boys had already gone off to play in the jungle, she was only slightly surprised to find herself disappointed. It wasn’t that she missed them, she told herself, it was that she didn’t want to hang out with just Makino and Dadan while they talked.

By now, Kitty knew the general direction the boys would go on their daily trek out to their fort, wherever that was. She’d never delved into the forest by herself, but really, how hard could it be? “Makino, I’ll be back in a few hours!” Kitty shouted in the general direction of the house. Without a glance back or waiting for an answer, she strode off into the jungle.

Compared to the jungle back home, the terrain was flatter and less dense; less underbrush meant better visibility, so picking her footing was easier as well. She even picked up a good solid walking stick too. Twenty minutes in, she was still alone. Forty five minutes in, there was still no sign of the boys...but the crack of a snapping branch told her she wasn’t alone any more. She turned in the direction of the sound in time for the biggest boar she’d ever seen in her life to burst out of the bushes, squealing furiously. Behind it Ace, Sabo, and Luffy followed in hot pursuit, all wielding makeshift spears and shouting excitedly.

The boar’s furious little eyes fixed on Kitty, and she could see the moment it decided to charge. The boys saw too; Ace shouted for her to run, but her feet wouldn’t budge even as the beast bore down on her.

Her feet wouldn’t move, but her hands did. She instinctively squeezed her eyes shut and threw her hands up, as if that would stop the full ton of blood-rage fueled razor sharp tusks-

Thunder cracked through the air, blinding lightning flashing. As it faded, there was one second of silence, then two. Kitty hesitantly opened her eyes; the boar still stood in front of her, but its eyes were glazed over, fur smoking and sparking. A moment later it collapsed over on its side and lay still.

“What the HELL was that!?” Kitty looked up to see Ace, Sabo, and Luffy staring at her. If their jaws were dropped any lower, they’d be on the jungle floor - in Luffy’s case, literally. Ace stomped over and jabbed at the boar with his spear. It didn’t so much as twitch. “What the hell did you do!?” Ace demanded.

“Was that lightning!?” Sabo chimed in, eyes wide.

“SO COOL!!” Luffy exclaimed, starry eyed. “You can shoot lightning out of your hands!!”

“No I can’t,” Kitty said hastily. “I don’t know what happened!”

“Bullshit,” Ace said. He stomped over and grabbed her wrist, holding her hand up so everyone could see the sparks still flickering on her fingertips. “You never said you ate a Devil Fruit.”

Kitty snatched her hand back. “It’s- that’s none of your business!” She hid her hands behind her back and shuffled her feet. Judging from the look the boys shot one another, they definitely didn’t believe her.

“Do you think that would work on Luffy?” Sabo said thoughtfully. “I mean, he’s made of rubber.”

“Let’s try it!” Luffy said cheerfully.

“No,” Ace snapped. He turned back to Kitty, staring at her hard. “Have you had this Devil Fruit the whole time you’ve been here?”

Kitty hesitated, looking back and forth between the three boys. SIlently, she weighed the pros and cons of telling them the truth, and decided on a compromise. Just enough to sate their curiosity, but not enough to risk herself. “I got it before I got to this island,” she said after a moment. “And yeah, it’s lightning. I’m not very good at using it, so I don’t. That’s all.”

“Where did you get it?” Sabo asked curiously.

“If you get struck by real lightning, will you die?” Luffy chimed in.

“Does it have something to do with your parents?” Ace said. She turned to meet his hard stare. “You’re not telling us everything.”

Kitty jutted her chin out a bit, meeting the accusatory stare head on. “No, I’m not,” she said flatly. “And you’re gonna have to deal with it.”

Ace threw his hands into the air. “Fine! Whatever. I don’t really care anyway. Why are you even out here? I said you can’t come to our fort, and it’s dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“I can take care of myself,” Kitty argued hotly. “I took down a giant pig!”

“And it smells yummy. Can we eat it?” Luffy interrupted, visibly drooling as he eyed the boar greedily.

“It’s not just the animals, the terrain is bad if you don’t know it!” Ace continued. 

“Aw, are you worried about me?” Kitty taunted, putting her hands on her hips. His freckled cheeks turned pink even as his scowl deepened.

“I don’t give a damn! Just go back to Dadan’s before Makino misses you,” he snapped. “Sabo, Luffy, come on.”

“But Ace! Boar meat!” Luffy whined. Still, he followed after the unmoved Ace into the foliage with Sabo close behind.

“We can’t carry that across the gorge, we’ll kill another on the other side,” Sabo assured him. “We’ll get a bigger one.”

Luffy pumped a delighted fist into the air. “Yay!!”

“I don’t wanna see your stupid fort anyway!” Kitty shouted after them. No response. “I bet it sucks!” With a sigh, she picked up her walking stick, and after one last glare in the direction the boys had gone, she turned and headed back they way she’d came.

—-

Kitty only had the patience to wait a few days before trying to follow the boys to their fort again. After the boar incident, they’d finally allowed her to hang out in the same general vicinity - “they” meaning Ace. Sabo and Luffy liked her from the beginning, but it wasn’t until after the fistfight and the boar electrocution that Ace stopped being such an obnoxious shithead about her being nearby. But the fort was still a no-go; not because she was a girl, Sabo explained. None of them cared about things like that. But the jungle  _ was  _ dangerous, and Ace didn’t want that responsibility.

Kitty couldn’t help but scoff at his explanation. Responsibility. Sure, there were beasts about, but she could kill them easily with her Devil Fruit. The terrain hadn’t seemed so bad either. Some day, she would find their fort, and rub it in Ace’s stupid freckled face that she was just as capable as the boys. Today was that day.

She waited until they’d been gone for a good ten minutes before following. She wasn’t a tracker, but Luffy was clumsy and left a good solid trail of broken branches and twigs as he went. Just like the last time, nearly an hour of monotonous trekking through the underbrush passed without incident. She’d taken one of Sabo’s old pipe-staves; it was kinda creaky, but since it was metal it should work for her better than a stick.

Kitty was lost in thought, pondering the balance of a pipe staff, whether it would hold up if she just whaled on something with it, and whether it would let her use her Devil Fruit more easily. She almost didn’t hear the subtle shifting of the brush, but instinct made her freeze and look up in time to see a tiger the size of a house leaping out of the gloom, claws out.

She didn’t even have time to scream. Kitty hit the ground hard, the pipe clattering to the ground outside her reach at the same time one of the tiger’s claws slashed her arm. Now she screamed, and let out as much electricity as she could. The tiger jumped back, yowling, and she didn’t wait to be told twice before jumping up and bolting away.

Kitty ran through the jungle underbrush as fast as her wobbly legs could carry her. Blood streamed down her arm, and twigs and vines smacked at her as she went, but she kept going, just needing as much space as possible between her and that monster-

Suddenly only air greeted her feet instead of solid jungle floor, and she was falling. Kitty tumbled over and around, tear-streaked vision blurring, before slamming into something solid. At the same time, her ankle crunched beneath her, and she screamed again.

It took several minutes for her to calm down enough to gather herself and look around. She’d fallen down into a deep gorge, and landed on a ledge maybe twenty feet from the top. Everything hurt, but especially the deep slice on her upper arm and her ankle, which was probably broken. “Fuck,” Kitty choked out. Makino would’ve been mad to hear her swear, but if ever there was a time for it, this was it. Sabo had mentioned a gorge, right? Maybe their fort was near here. Kitty wiped the tears from her face and sucked in a deep breath before shouting, “Help! Ace, Sabo, Luffy! Help me!!” The only answer was the vague echo of her cracked voice from the other side of the gorge.


	3. Stitches

Night fell, and Kitty still lay on the ledge, praying she wouldn’t fall into the river below. Her voice had long since gone hoarse and her head throbbed from all the crying, but every couple of minutes she mustered up her strength to shout for help again. Makino has to know something was wrong, right? Ace and them would go back, Makino would tell them she was missing, and they’d come look for her. Right?

“Help,” Kitty called again, but it was less a call and more of an exhausted mumble.

“Kitty?” She stirred at the voice, and blinked blearily up at the top ledge. There, barely visible in the gloom was Sabo, staring down at her in horror. “Kitty! Are you okay? What are you doing down there??”

She couldn’t move, let alone muster the strength to shout back. Kitty let her head flop back onto the stone.

“Stay there, okay? I’m gonna get help. I’ll come right back, just hold on!”

Of course I’ll stay here, Kitty thought dazedly to herself. She’d been stuck here this long, what was another hour or twenty?

She wasn’t sure how much time passed, but it was  _ some  _ amount of time before voices woke her up again. No matter how she blinked, her vision didn’t quite want to focus, but she recognized Ace’s furious voice next to her, cut through with worry. “What the  _ hell _ were you thinking?” Ace demanded. “You could’ve died! You look half dead! I told you this jungle is fucking dangerous!”

“Save her first, yell at her later!” Sabo’s voice scolded Ace. He sounded like he was still at the top of the gorge. “How’s she look?”

She mumbled something that was supposed to say she’d had it under control, but it came out mostly incoherent. Ace ignored her. “She’s bled a lot! And her foot looks weird, it might be broke!” He prodded at her foot gently, earning a choked sob. “Definitely broke.”

“Should we take her back to Dadan?” Sabo called back. “It might not be smart to move her so much.”

“Is she gonna be okay?” Luffy’s teary voice asked from nearby. He was definitely crying. How had they even gotten down here?

“I don’t know, I don’t know medical stuff,” Ace said frustratedly. As he talked, she could hear him ripping something and then wrapping it tightly around her cut arm. “It’s too dangerous to try and make it back through the jungle with her, every predator within two miles will smell the blood. We’ll take her to the fort tonight, then to Dadan’s first thing in the morning.”

Ace carefully maneuvered her onto his back. Her foot caught on a rock, making her whimper.

“Sorry,” Ace muttered. “Come on.”

—-

As half-conscious as she was, Kitty didn’t know at what point Sabo had run back to Dadan’s for help. Ace and Luffy stayed with Kitty, helping her get some water - at least until Luffy passed out, leaving just Kitty and Ace. She’d finally woken up properly, thanks to the water, and leaned back against the base of the trunk of the tree where the boys had built their fort. Ace sat across from her, arms crossed and glaring at her sullenly.

“Thanks for coming to get me,” Kitty said eventually, breaking the silence.

His scowl deepened. “I told you the jungle is dangerous,” he snapped. “What the hell were you thinking? You could’ve died! Again!”

“I didn’t ask your opinion,” she retorted, but she cut off in a coughing fit. Ace wordlessly passed her the water cup, and she chugged it down gratefully.

“Heeeey!” They perked up at the shout, turning to see Sabo reappear out of the darkness alongside Dadan, the latter carrying a small case. Dadan scoffed at the sight of Kitty’s bloody arm.

“What the hell have you done now, girl?” she said, kneeling beside her. “Sabo, hold the flashlight so I can see. Didn’t they tell you the jungle is dangerous, especially if you don’t know the area?”

“I know,” Kitty sighed. Sabo knelt close to her, holding the flashlight so Dadan could peer closely at the cut. “Ace already yelled at me.”

“She’s hurt, could you go without being rude to her for five minutes?” Sabo said pointedly. “Makino would be really disappointed with how you’re treating her.”

Ace shot him a sour look. “Yeah, yeah, I know,” he grumbled. “Fine. I apologize.”

“You need stitches,” Dadan said bluntly, cutting Kitty off before she could reply. “I don’t have any painkillers so you’re gonna have to put on your big girl britches.”

Kitty swallowed hard. “Okay.”

“Sabo, get a handful of branches around a half-inch thick, and a wood plank big enough to cover the bottom of her foot,” Dadan continued. “We’ll take her to a real doctor to set the bone.” Sabo nodded and scampered off into the jungle. Meanwhile, Kitty watched with growing dread as Dadan settled in next to her with the needle and thread.

“Have you ever had stitches before?” Ace asked. Kitty shook her head, keeping her eyes fixed on the unnervingly large curved needle as Dadan threaded it. “Well, it sucks but you’ll feel better after.”

“Try not to flinch, it’ll hurt more,” Dadan warned. Kitty took in a deep breath and nodded. Despite herself, the first prick of the needle prompted a flinch, making Dadan hiss in annoyance. Kitty tried to focus on her breathing - in two three four, out two three four - to distract herself from the pain.

“Slow down your breathing,” Ace ordered. “You’re gonna hyperventilate.”

“Trying not to think about it,” Kitty retorted through gritted teeth. He was right, she was already getting lightheaded, but  _ damn _ this sucked. With her good arm, she dug her nails into her palm to focus on that instead, but was interrupted by Ace taking her hand in his. At her confused glance, he blushed pink.

“You’ll cut your hand open if you do that,” he grumbled, not meeting her eyes. “Just focus on not passing out.”

“Hold still,” Dadan said sternly. “You’ll have a crooked scar if you keep moving.”

“I’m gonna have a scar?”

“Duh?”

“Huh. Okay. Okay. Cool. It’s no fun if you don’t get a scar,” Kitty said, more to herself than to anybody. Beside her, she could’ve sworn a flicker of a smile crossed Ace’s face, but it was gone by the time she looked at him properly.

Sabo returned shortly before the stitches were done. Kitty was proud to say that she made it the whole time without so much as whimpering, but that streak brokee when they placed her broken foot in the makeshift boot they’d put together. Dadan accidentally bumped her heel roughly in the middle of it, and the world went white for a second. Ace’s grip on her hand brought her back a moment later, and for that one moment she could admit she was grateful he was there. 

“Are you okay?” Sabo asked, kneeling in front of her.

“I’ve been better,” Kitty said faintly.

“Ace, you carry her back,” Dadan said. Ace’s head whipped around and he shot her an incredulous look.

“Why me?” Ace demanded. “It’s not my fault she’s a moron-”

“I don’t give a damn, I did what you brats asked even though she’s not my responsibility,” Dadan snapped back.

“I mean, Makino’s already upset,” Sabo said cautiously. “She was freaking out earlier. We should get Kitty back as soon as possible.”

Ace groaned. “Okay, fine,” he snapped. “But I’m gonna complain the whole time.”

He knelt down, and Sabo helped Kitty onto Ace’s back. She held on tight with her good arm. “Can you carry me all the way back okay, since I’m taller than you?” she mumbled.

“I carried you earlier just fine,” Ace snapped, twisting around to glare at her from the corner of his eye. “Don’t underestimate me.”

Wait, what? Had he really? Her memory of being found was fuzzy at best, but she thought she’d remember something like that. “You did?”

“How did you think you got here from the gorge? Luffy stretched his arm and I used it like a rope to climb down and get you.” Ace jerked his head over towards the still-sleeping Luffy. Sabo, who'd bodily scooped up his younger brother, nodded in confirmation.

“Oh. Thank you.”

Ace shifted her weight on his back before setting off after Sabo. “Yeah, well, don’t thank me yet. Your foot is still fucked up.”

Kitty ducked her head. “I just wanted to see the fort," she said quietly. Ave snorted.

“You said you didn’t want to! Why the hell would I let you when you didn’t even want to see it?” he said scathingly.

“I was lying!” Ace twisted around to stare at her, but she looked away to avoid it. “I lied, okay? Windmill Village is boring when you’re the only kid who’s not a baby. And you’re annoying but I don’t mind hanging out with you and Sabo and Luffy.”

She could practically feel him roll his eyes. “Well, if you want to be friends, you’ve sure got a weird way of showing it,” he said flatly.

“ _ I’m _ weird? You’re the one who’s been an ass the whole time!”

“You said I was stupid because I want to be a pirate!”

“You  _ are _ stupid for wanting to be a pirate!”

“Can we not?” Sabo interrupted tiredly. “For just five minutes, can you two  _ please _ not argue?”

“No,” Kitty and Ace answered at the same time. Despite herself, she felt a smile tugging at her lips. If she'd been paying attention, she'd have noticed Ace's matching grin.

\---

Sabo had been right about Makino. She burst into tears the moment Ace carried Kitty out of the jungle, running over to bundle them both into a tight hug. “Kitty-chan! Where on  _ earth _ did you go? What happened to your arm and leg? Are you okay? What were you thinking!”

“Sorry,” Kitty mumbled. The late hour, her injuries, and the hour walk back to Dadan’s had worn her out so much that she didn’t even care that she'd laid her head on Ace’s shoulder. She blinked blearily up at her. “I wanted to see the fort.”

“She was chased off the gorge edge by one of the giant tigers,” Sabo explained as Makino fretted over Kitty's bandages. “It’s not her fault.”

Makino sighed, wiping her face. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow. For now, we all need rest, especially Kitty. I already asked Dadan if we could stay here till morning.”

“Now she’s sleeping over?” Ace groused.

_ “Ace-kun.” _

“Okay, sheesh.” Ace shifted Kitty’s weight once more before carrying her inside. Most of the bandits she’d seen around had already passed out, including Dadan. Her right hand man, whose name Kitty couldn’t remember for the life of her, immediately jumped up and opened the door to what she assumed was the boys' room. Sabo dropped Luffy unceremoniously on the floor, where he bounced comically a couple of times before settling down - not waking up at any point of this manhandling. It was almost amazing.

Ace was a little gentler with setting Kitty down; at least, he made sure her bad foot wasn’t jostled as he knelt and let her slide off his back. He didn’t offer her a pillow or blanket or anything before he rather aggressively tucked himself into bed, though, so it seemed his kindness had run out. Sabo at least silently offered his blanket and Luffy’s pillow. It would have to do.


	4. End of the Beginning

“Don’t be stupid!” Ace put his hands on his hips, shooting Kitty an incredulous look. “You can’t make it all the way on that foot.”

“No, but you could carry me,” Kitty said with a smile she meant to be friendly, but in reality was more taunting. “We’re friends now, right?”

“I never said that! I said you had a weird way of saying you want to be friends. And I’m not a mule, you can’t just hop on my back whenever,” he snapped. “I  _ only  _ carried you because you were hurt.”

“Well  _ I  _ think we’re friends,” Luffy said firmly. He sat on the ground, delightedly examining a new beetle he'd found. "Look at this one's horns!"

“I gotta agree with Ace,” Sabo said reluctantly. He crossed his arms with a frown. “It’s not like we go to the fort so we can sit around and drink tea. There’s no way you could keep up with us.”

“It’s been three weeks, I’m practically healed!” Kitty gestured to her foot, bound up in plaster and stuck in a support boot. “I can’t move fast, but I was able to make it here with Makino. Come on, I don’t wanna be alone.”

“Would Makino even let you into the jungle again?” Sabo pointed out. “She got super freaked out when you got hurt.”

“Well, if you can’t go into the jungle, we could play here,” Luffy said cheerfully. There was a beat of silence where Sabo glanced at Ace.

“That could work,” Sabo said slowly. Ace made a face. “No, think about it. Kitty only comes up here every few days, what’s it matter if we spend a few hours here? We can go out once she leaves.”

“Yeah!” Luffy agreed enthusiastically.

Ace looked back and forth between Kitty, Sabo, and Luffy, all giving him their best pleading stares. After a long second, he groaned and threw his hands up into the air. “Fine! We’ll stay here for a while,” he exclaimed.

Sabo, Luffy, and Kitty all cheered. “Thanks, Ace,” Kitty said with a smile.

Ace waved her off. “Yeah, sure, whatever. Don’t say I never did you any favors.”

—-

Nine months had now passed since Kitty had arrived in Windmill Village, and been placed in Makino’s care by Garp. Kitty’s foot had healed, and the cut on her arm had healed into a thin pink scar about four or five inches long. Only a few other things had changed: Kitty had learned about the true parentages of Ace, Sabo, and Luffy; she and Ace had stopped fighting so often (or at least, as seriously); and most importantly, she’d finally been allowed to go up into the fort itself.

By now, Kitty knew the area well enough that she didn’t need Makino to guide her up the mountain. She hiked up there nearly every day, getting to Dadan’s house in time to catch Ace, Sabo, and Luffy before they headed into the jungle for the day. The first time she’d done this, Makino expressed her anxiety that Kitty could get hurt again, but also acknowledged that Kitty was old enough to be making these decisions for herself.

“Please be careful,” Makino said, laying a hand on Kitty’s shoulder. “I know you’re not my daughter, but I do care about you a great deal.”

“I know. I’ll watch out, I promise,” Kitty replied with a smile.

Winter had arrived as well - being a temperate island, it didn’t get super cold, but all four of them bundled up in pants and coats as they ran through the chilled jungle.

“So are you ever gonna tell us more about your Devil Fruit?” Ace said one day. Kitty had just used it to help start a bonfire. All of the boys could survive on their own in the wild, including fire starting, but they all agreed that using her electricity to light bark strips was much more convenient.

“What do you mean? It’s lightning, there’s not much to it,” she said, looking away from the smoldering baby flame with a furrowed brow.

“No, I mean, how you got it? You seemed pretty touchy about it,” Ace explained. He leaned back against a felled log, his arms up behind his head as a cushion. “It’s got something to do with your parents being gone, I know it does.”

“You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want,” Sabo said hastily. Beside him, Luffy nodded emphatically. “If it’s personal-”

Kitty sighed, tugging her mittens back on. “I mean, it kind of is,” she said evasively. “But you guys told me your secrets, so I guess I owe you an answer.”

“Hell yeah you do. There are no secrets between the four of us,” Ace said firmly. “So tell.”

“Okay.” Kitty sat with a heavy sigh. “There’s a guy, Leonardo, who runs a big mafia, and he  _ really _ likes buying Devil Fruits. Mom and dad came across one, and offered to sell it to him. I didn’t know about it, and I found it in the fridge and ate it because I didn’t know what it was. And man, it tasted gross."

"So did the Gum Gum Fruit," Luffy chimed in.

"So when mom and dad saw it was gone, they panicked, right? Leonardo was gonna be mad. He might even kill me to get the Fruit back. So dad had the idea to take one of the pomegranates from the orchard, paint it to look like a Devil Fruit, and sell  _ that _ to Leonardo instead.”

Sabo whistled in awe. “That’s gutsy.”

“That’s dumb,” Ace frowned. “He’d just go back once he realized it was fake.”

Kitty gave him a flat stare. "Why do you think I'm here?"

Sabo elbowed Ace hard. "Tact, moron."

"Ouch! God, okay, sorry."

“So Leonardo got super mad. He paid off local government people to have them thrown in jail, then burned down our house for good measure," Kitty finished. "And here I am."

Ace and Sabo looked thoughtful and disturbed, respectively. Luffy, meanwhile, nodded firmly as if deciding something. “I did the same thing," he said conversationally.

Ace, Kitty, and Sabo all stared at him. “You...burned down a house?” Sabo said after a beat of disbelieving silence.

“No. I ate the Gum Gum Fruit on accident. You ate your Devil Fruit on accident. It’s kinda funny,” Luffy explained. Despite herself, Kitty couldn’t help a laugh.

“Yeah, I guess it is,” she smiled.

“But aren’t you worried Leonardo is gonna come after you?” Sabo pointed out. 

“I mean, maybe,” Kitty shrugged. “But the only people who know I ate it  _ and  _ know where I am, are you guys.”

“Guess that’s why the old man brought you here,” Ace said thoughtfully. He prodded at the bonfire with a stick. “This seems to be the place he dumps kids that he doesn't want found.”

Kitty grimaced. “That sounds like he’s a serial kid killer or something.”

“He might as well be! Just ask Luffy, he’s been trying to kill us since we were babies,” Ace groused. Luffy nodded energetically in agreement.

“He’s crazy! He threw me out in the jungle to survive on my own when I was five!” Luffy exclaimed. “I almost died!”

“You almost died  _ today,” _ Sabo teased.

“Did not!”

"Okaaay, well, I know it’s not as wild as being nobility, or the son of a revolutionary, or the son of the King of the Pirates, but there it is,” Kitty said, breaking her side eyeing of Luffy.

"Welcome to the shitty childhood club, then," Ace said, gesturing with his stick, which was now on fire on the end. She just smiled and shook her head.

"Right now, it's actually not too bad," she said thoughtfully.


	5. Beginning of the End

Luffy was eight, Ace and Sabo were eleven, and Kitty was twelve. Spring had arrived in Goa Kingdom, marking one year since Kitty had arrived. By now, she was as comfortable here as if she’d been born here.

The four kids had lived their share of trouble; they’d taken on all sorts of creatures all over the Colubo mountains, survived on their own for weeks at a stretch, played pirates...except for Kitty, who still hated pirates. She'd play bandits, which wasn’t as fun in the boys’ opinions, but she didn’t care that much. They'd also caused all sorts of ruckus over in the Goa Capitol, over on the other side of the Colubo mountains. The boys had introduced her to ramen, and it was  _ freaking delicious. _ It amazed her how many times the ramen shops let them in, realizing their mistake too late as the four giggling kids jumped out the window and bolted down the street as fast as their legs would carry them.

They’d originally planned on terrorizing yet another shop today, but a particularly strong storm had blown across the island and torn up the fort pretty well. So the four of them made their way down the mountain towards Gray Terminal to pick up supplies to rebuild.

“I want a telescope!” Luffy exclaimed cheerfully. He leaped into a puddle, spraying water everywhere. “I think that would be super cool! Maybe we could see Makino’s bar from the fort with it!”

"You’ll never find something like that,” Ace scoffed. “Anything that good would’ve been looted ages ago.”

“I’d like a cannon better,” Sabo piped up. “It’d be better for defense.” He mimed lighting a cannon and plugging his ears. "BOOM!"

"It'd be hard to get a whole canon up into the tree,” Kitty pointed out. “We’d have to do a pulley system, and I don’t think we have enough rope for that.”

"If we got enough rope, we could make it work," Sabo muttered half to himself. He counted on his fingers. "Eh, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it, I guess."

“We’re here,” Ace called from ahead. “Let’s split up, cover more ground.”

“Okay!” Ace, Sabo, Luffy, and Kitty separated, picking through the huge piles of trash and rubble as they went. No matter how many times she saw it, the sheer volume of discarded  _ things _ astonished her, but she knew there were some excellent finds if you kept your eyes peeled.

Kitty was just getting ready to head back when a hushed whisper caught her attention. “Kitty!” Ace hissed. He popped up beside her with Luffy close behind, and pulled her down beside him. He put a finger over his lips before pointing down the hill. At the bottom of it, she could see Sabo’s familiar blue coat, surrounded by at five or six hulking figures all drawing in closer. “That's Bluejam.”

"Didn't he kidnap Luffy last year?” Kitty whispered. “What’s he doing here?”

Ace shook his head, keeping his eyes fixed on the figures surrounding his brother. “I don’t know, but it can’t be good. Come on, let’s go kick their asses.”

...

They’d been cocky. They'd never lost a fight once they teamed up against an enemy, why would this time be any different? Bluejam had distracted them with his gun, and all four of them had been grabbed and pinned by his goonies. That was bad, but they’d gotten out of worse before. But that was before Goa Capitol guards had arrived, complete with biohazard suits and guns, flanking a man dressed as only nobility could afford.

The plot had become quickly apparent; this man, whom Sabo bitterly confirmed to be his father, hired Bluejam’s pirates to find Sabo and bring him back into the capitol. Now that they’d found him, Sabo’s father casually ordered the pirates to make sure that Ace, Luffy, and Kitty would never ‘tempt’ Sabo ever again. The cruel implication made Kitty’s blood run cold in her veins. But when Sabo turned to his father and offered his freedom in exchange for their lives, blazing rage thawed the ice.

She didn't even think; none of the men noticed the air crackling until the pirate pinning her to the ground stiffened and screamed, electricity arcing off him and hitting the pirates closest to him. Kitty leapt to her feet and charged the two holding down Ace and Luffy; across from her, the capitol guards shouted and leveled their guns at her. She stepped behind one of the remaining pirates and felt rather than heard the bullets hit him. Ace lay just a step away, she reached out for him-

Bluejam himself stepped into her path, leveling his pistol right at her forehead. “You’re just as bad a fucking troublemaker as these three,” he snarled. “That’s enough of that.” Kitty squeezed her eyes shut as Bluejam squeezed the trigger. At the same time, a hand closed around her ankle and pulled hard, making her stumble and fall backwards. Her head hit something,  _ hard,  _ and everything went black.

...

A throbbing headache and stiff, painful muscles greeted Kitty felt when she finally came to. She groaned and shifted, only to find she couldn’t move.

“Kitty!” She opened her eyes. She’d been sat in the middle of a dim room, tied tightly with rope with her back to what could only be Luffy and Ace. When she tried to turn to face them, her body didn’t want to respond. What the hell…?

“S...Sabo?” Kitty mumbled. It was hard to think when she felt so weak. “Did we…?”

A nasty laugh interrupted her. “Good morning, princess,” the voice taunted. She looked over to see Bluejam, sprawled on a wide chair as if he owned the place. His haughty grin widened, revealing cracked teeth. “Welcome to my ship, brats."

\---

Working for Bluejam  _ sucked _ , but according to Ace, it was the best thing to do to keep Sabo safe. Kitty wasn’t sure she agreed - why not just barge into Hightown and bust him out? In the end, though, she decided to go with Ace’s decision and see how things went. Besides, they were getting paid. Kitty didn’t care much about the boys' pirate savings, but she cared about the boys, and she knew money would help further down the line.

Bluejam even explained about the sea prism stone cuff he’d put on her that first day. She’d known about the drowning thing - that was the most common legend around Devil Fruits - but sea prism stone was new information. “I won’t make you wear it,” Bluejam promised, “because it paralyzes you, and that’s no good for moving packages like we’re doing. So long as you don’t do any stupid shit.” Kitty didn’t like it at all, but again, she followed Ace’s lead.

“We’ll make some money, we’ll bide our time, we’ll get Sabo back eventually,” Ace said the second night of the deal. He, Luffy, and Kitty sat around the bonfire eating fish. The mood was somber; even Luffy was quiet as he picked out the tiny bones. “And we’ll make sure you’re safe too.”

Kitty blinked. “Me? What do you mean?”

“Your Devil Fruit powers were supposed to be secret, but now Bluejam and his crew and who knows who else has seen it. You said that Leonardo guy would kill you to get the Fruit back, right?” Ace said pointedly. She nodded. That thought hadn’t occurred to her. Had she really gotten so comfortable that shed forgotten to be careful? “I’m not gonna let  _ two  _ of my friends be taken from me,” he said fiercely, crossing his arms. “I’ll protect all of you, and we  _ will _ get Sabo back.” Beside him, Luffy nodded energetically in agreement.

Kitty blinked back a sudden misting of tears, but still felt a mischievous smile curl her lips. "I think that's the first time you've called me your friend," she pointed out. Ace's freckled cheeks blushed red in response.

"God, you always ruin it!" he griped.

\---

The three of them were at least allowed to go back to their fort at night, though it felt uncomfortably lonely without Sabo. Even with Luffy and Ace’s dual snoring, it was just too quiet.

The third day of their arrangement with Bluejam was also the day that Kitty made her weekly journey back to Windmill Village to see if any word had come about her parents. A year was a long time to spend in prison, but they seemed to be doing okay, even though there was no word yet on whether they’d be released. Makino had taken a long time to get used to the idea of Kitty being gone so much, but in the end she’d accepted it. “Makino, I’m back,” Kitty called, knocking on the door of the bar. Makino looked up, a tired smile breaking across her face.

“Oh, Kitty-chan, thank goodness,” she exclaimed. She came over and pulled her into a tight hug, which Kitty returned gladly. She really loved this about Makino - even if Kitty were wet, dirty, or sticky, she always got a great hug from her the minute she came back. The way this week had been, she desperately needed some affection. “I was starting to worry.”

“Why? Did I count the days wrong?" Kitty counted the days in her head. No, it had been a week.

Makino shook her head, gesturing to one of the tables. “No, no. It’s just...there’s something important that I need to tell you. But first, are you alright? You look exhausted.”

Kitty frowned down at the worn tabletop. “There’s been a lot going on,” she said after a second. Makino listened patiently as Kitty poured out everything that had happened over the last few days, covering her mouth in shock when Kitty got to Sabo’s fate.

“Oh, Kitty-chan, I’m so sorry,” she sighed. “If I knew you all were going as far as the Gray Terminal-”

“It sucks,” Kitty interrupted. She laid her head on the table, sniffling. “I wanna go get him, but Ace said we should wait since we don't want Sabo to get hurt because of us.”

“Kitty-chan.” Makino laid a hand on her shoulder. “Kitty, listen to me. You need to stay here for a couple of days.”

She blinked up at her. Marino's face was unusually serious, holding her full attention. “Stay here? Why?”

“There’s a Celestial Dragon visiting Goa Kingdom in the morning, and they’re stopping at the capitol. I don’t want you anywhere near them. Tragedy follows wherever they go.” Makino sat heavily across from her. “You know what they do, right?”

“They’re nobles, right?” Kitty guessed.

“They’re  _ world _ nobles. They will do whatever they want, take whatever they want, kill whatever they want, and nobody can so much as look them in the eye over it. If you cross their path, you could end up dead or worse. I know…" Here Makino hesitated, reaching out to place her hand on Kitty's. "I know I’m not your mother, but I  _ am _ your guardian, and I care about you very much.  _ Please _ , stay here today and tomorrow. Once the Celestial Dragon is gone, you can go back.”

Kitty chewed her lip. “Alright. Today and tomorrow,” she agreed reluctantly. Ace and Luffy wouldn't be too happy, but it was just for a couple days. “But then I’m going back. They’re my friends, and we need each other more than ever right now.”

“I understand. I’m so glad you all have each other. And I know that if anybody can find a way to get Sabo-kun back, it’s you and those boys.” Makino ruffled Kitty’s hair affectionately. “Now come on, I have dinner ready. You look like you could use a good, hot meal to cheer you up.”

“That sounds amazing. Thanks, Makino.”


	6. Griefstrike

Kitty spent that whole night tossing and turning; it had been months since she’d spent so much time away from her friends, even longer since she’d slept in a real bed. The air felt too hot, too hard to breathe, and on top of her worry about Sabo ended up keeping her from falling asleep until late. Makino, bless her, took one look at Kitty’s tired face and whipped up a breakfast of eggs and sausages and toast. Kitty wolfed it down while Makino went out to get the paper.

Tomorrow, she’d head back to the fort and meet with Ace and Luffy. Ace had said they needed to let Sabo go, for now. She agreed with him, but that didn’t mean she’d stop trying to think of ways to get her friend back. They had to. Kitty stabbed at a piece of sausage as Makino stepped back inside, the newspaper in her hand and dismay on her face. “Kitty-chan!” she exclaimed, “there was a fire in Gray Terminal! That’s not where you and the boys have been staying, right?”

She stared at Makino, unaware of the fork slipping from her hands and clanging onto the plate. “Gray Terminal...burned?” she repeated dumbly.

“We’ll go to Dadan-san’s, and make sure Ace-kun and Lu- hey wait!”

Kitty was already out the door, hopping on one foot at a time to pull on her shoes before bolting for the jungle at a dead run. Her thoughts and stomach both churned. She’d already lost her parents and Sabo, she couldn’t lose Ace and Luffy too. No, they wouldn’t have been caught in the fire, Ace was too smart and too fast for that. He’d keep Luffy safe. He must’ve.

The mountain path usually took an hour to climb, but Kitty made it to Dadan’s home in less than half that. She stumbled to a halt, wheezing and bending over with her hands on her knees and focusing on not throwing up. Things looked deceptively peaceful, cheerful sunshine beating down on the house, but it didn’t  _ feel  _ right. She wiped the sweat from her eyes and made her way over to the door, opening it just in time to hear a familiar voice give a desperate shout.

“No! No, Ace is  _ not _ dead!” Luffy cried. One of them, Dogma, was holding Luffy back from bolting out the door while the rest looked on miserably. They were all dirty and sweaty with singed clothes that reeked of smoke, and not a one was uninjured. Luffy in particular was in rough shape, his shirt half burned off and his head bandaged up. And most notably, neither Ace nor Dadan were to be found.

“Ace is dead?” She’d said it softly, but everybody turned to look at her anyway. Luffy’s eyes filled with tears and he bolted over, clutching her tightly and sobbing onto her shoulder. She instinctively pulled him into a hug as she looked to Dogma, silently pleading for him to deny it.

“It was a big fire,” he said hesitantly. “If we’re honest, chances Ace and Boss made it out alive are slim.”

“We’ll go find them,” Kitty said firmly. Luffy looked up at her, sniffling. He was getting tears and snot all over her shirt but she didn’t care. “Come on, we’ll grab the first aid kit and go now.”

“You can’t, it’s too dangerous," Dogma exclaimed. He gave them both pleading looks. "Troops are everywhere, they’re killing any survivors,” Dogma explained.

“They’re  _ what!?” _

“The fire was on purpose. It was to rid the country of Gray Terminal while the Celestial Dragon is here," another bandit piped up, wiping dirt and sweat from their face. "We can’t go over there ‘til the world noble is gone.”

“I don’t give a fuck about a celestial dragon,” Kitty hissed. “If Dadan and Ace are alive-”

“Then Dagra will find them,” Dogma finished. “We can’t risk sending any more of us, never mind you kids. We’re responsible for you. We don't know what happened to them, but if they come home just to find out you two got shot-”

“Everyone! Hey! Heyyy!!” One of the other bandits burst into the house, a teary smile across his face. “They’re back! They’re alive!”

Kitty and Luffy shared a wide eyed glance before bolting out the door,everyone else quick on their heels. A hulking figure slowly staggered out of the jungle towards the house, and after a second she recognized the form as Dadan, heavily injured and poorly bandaged, being carried on Ace’s back. He seemed unhurt, but his grimacing face was streaked with sweat and dirt.

The bandits all burst into relieved exclamations in between their tears (and in Luffy’s case, just plain started bawling), and quickly helped Dadan down and into the house. Kitty wiped her own tears and stepped up to Ace, laying a hand on his shoulder. “Are you alright?”

Ace shrugged her hand off with a cold glance. “Where were you?”

The smile dropped from Kitty's face. She swallowed, hesitating before answering. “I… Makino wanted me to stay in the village while the Celestial Dragon was here. I came as soon as I heard about the fire,” she explained. Ace's expression remained chilly, but but he just scoffed and turned away. She watched him head inside while anxiety knotted her stomach. What exactly had happened out in Gray Terminal while she was gone?

Once Dadan’s injuries were dressed and Ace had been given time to wash up and get his injuries tended as well, everyone gathered in the main room to hear his account of what happened. Kitty listened silently, feeling her blood chill as he explained how he’d struggled to save the grievously injured Dadan’s life. The whole time, he refused to meet her eyes. His expression was carefully neutral, but Kitty knew him well enough to see the tension in his shoulders. He was mad, and she knew it was her doing.

She at least waited until after lunch before bringing it up, catching him alone outside. Luffy had long ago passed out from exhaustion, giving Ace a break from the rubber boy's clinging. “Ace, I’m sorry I wasn’t there," she started. For the first time all day, he turned to look her in the eyes. “If I’d been there, I could’ve helped you defeat Bluejam before the fire had gotten so bad. Then Dadan and Luffy might not have gotten so hurt on your way back. I  _ should’ve _ been there.”

Kitty waited anxiously as Ace let out a long sigh. “I know,” he said quietly, scratching the back of his head self-consciously. “It’s stupid to be mad about it when you had no idea.”

“A little,” she agreed with a small smile. “Are we okay?”

“Yeah. I guess I should just be happy you weren’t hurt too.” Ace held out a hand for her to shake, but she brushed it aside and hugged him instead. He stiffened, but relaxed and patted her back after a moment. “Okay, okay. I’ve gotten had enough of this from Luffy today.”

Kitty squeezed him tighter. “And you’ll get one more. I was scared you were gone too.”

“I’m  _ fine,”  _ Ace groaned. “Just because I’m younger than you doesn’t mean I’m weak.”

Kitty finally let him go with a laugh. “Yeah, I know, but you don’t have a Devil Fruit either,” she reminded him. “When I use it, you can’t beat me.”

“Yeah, but when we have an honest fight without it, you haven’t beaten me once.”

\---

The afternoon was drawing to a close before Dagra came back. The crickets and tree frogs chirped in a full symphony, and the whole mountain was dyed orange from the sunset. Kitty, Ace, and Luffy were sharing a snack and relaxing before bed when Dagra finally came home. One look at his pale, anguished face, and the mood of the room shattered. Kitty’s heart dropped to her stomach before the man even opened his mouth.

“Sabo is dead.”

…

The aftermath of Dagra’s grief-filled announcement was honestly predictable. Luffy burst into loud, wet wails, tears and snot streaming. Ace actually punched Dagra, shouting for him to stop lying, to not even joke about something like that, before being held back by Dogma. Kitty stood stock still, not trusting her ears. Sabo was dead?

Everyone listened as Dagra explained exactly what had happened. The stolen fishing boat, Sabo’s black sail, the celestial dragon, the explosion. Luffy’s wails continued to fill the air, but Ace and Kitty caught each other’s eye. There was a heartbeat of silent communication between them, the slightest of nods, and both of them bolted for the door.

“I think the fuck not!” Dadan shouted. She jumped Ace and slammed him into the ground; Dogma tried to jump Kitty, but she gave him a good shock and slipped out of his grasp.

“Kill him!” Ace shouted after Kitty from where Dadan pinned him to the ground. “Kill that dragon for Sabo!”

“Get your ass back here!” Dadan yelled. Dogma stood again, shaking off the last sparks, but Kitty had already disappeared into the jungle.

—

In the coming years, Kitty wouldn’t be surprised that she didn’t make it to the city in time to catch the celestial dragon before he left - and while she would eventually come to realize she would absolutely have died in an assassination attempt, she’d also always regret it deep in her heart. Sabo had been her friend, nearly a brother. He deserved vengeance if nothing else.

Just like Dagra had done, Kitty took a long time to come back to Dadan’s house. She took the long route through the jungle, avoiding the fort, dreading seeing Ace’s expression when he would find out she’d failed them  _ again _ . Maybe she should stay with Makino again, away from all this mess and this pain. This was just too much.

Dawn was just brushing the horizon with gold and peach fingertips when Dadan’s house finally came into view. Inside, everyone was asleep except Dogma. He leapt to his feet as she entered. “Kitty!” he said in a hushed whisper. “Thank god. We were terrified you were gonna get yourself killed!”

Kitty didn’t even say anything; she just went up to him and hugged him tight. Dogma stammered a bit, hands hovering a moment before tentatively settling on her shoulders. “I’m sorry I shocked you,” she sniffled.

“Oh, I’m okay, I promise. I understand why you did it.” He finally hugged her back, patting the top of her head soothingly. “Did you…?”

She shook her head. “The celestial dragon left.”

Dogma gave a heavy sigh as she finally pulled away. “Well, I won’t say he wouldn’t have deserved it. But I’m glad the navy won’t be after you for it.” 

Kitty nodded, wiping her eyes. “Where’s Ace?”

Dogma nodded towards the door. “He’s out on the cliff overlook, I think. Dadan had to tie him to the tree overnight so he wouldn’t follow you. He finally calmed down and I let him down a few minutes ago. And…” he hesitated. “Sabo sent a letter. He wrote it before he...left. It got here a bit ago, I gave it to Ace. It’s addressed to you three kids.”

Just like that, the grief was back along with a lump in her throat. She nodded heavily. “I’ll go check on him.”

...

Ace didn’t look at her as she sat next to him. His eyes and nose were red, shirt collar wet, and his lip was set in a way that told her his composure was much more fragile than it looked. Kitty turned her gaze to the sea, wrapped her arms around her knees, and waited.

One minute passed, then two, before Ace wordlessly handed over the letter. “It’s to all of us, but mostly you and me,” he said, voice raw with exhaustion and emotion. “His last request.”

Kitty smoothed out the creases as she silently read over the letter. Her lip wobbled as she read the words, ‘Somewhere out on the wide, free ocean…I’m sure that someday, we’ll meet!’ Of course...that was the boys’ dream, to become pirates as they each turned seventeen, and then to reunite out on the sea. She still didn’t like pirates, but Kitty was sure that if there were good ones, Sabo definitely would’ve been one.

Sabo’s last request of her and Ace was as predictable as it was redundant. As if there was any chance they wouldn’t watch over Luffy? She clutched the letter, feeling the sting of tears in her eyes. The whole thing wasn’t her fault, she knew that...but she still felt like she should’ve been there. No, thinking that way did none of them any good. She shook herself mentally before taking a deep breath. “Ace...I didn’t catch the celestial dragon,” Kitty said quietly.

He let out a slow breath. “I know. Dadan said the whole island would be ashes if you did.”

“You’re not mad?”

“‘Course I’m mad,” Ace retorted. “I’m fucking furious. I’d go up to the world government and kill them all, if I was strong enough.” He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white. “But I’m not mad at  _ you.  _ You didn’t kill Sabo. You’re our friend, you tried to avenge him.”

She nodded. The two kids were silent for a while, listening to the crash of the waves far below and the cries of the seagulls. The sun had fully risen by now, and the golds of sunrise faded.

“Is Luffy okay?” Ace asked eventually.

Kitty shrugged. “I don’t know. He was asleep when I got to the house. If he’s awake now, he’ll find us soon.”

“That’s fine.” He stood and offered her a hand. “Are you hungry? I’ll hunt down some breakfast for everyone.”

Kitty took his hand and let herself be pulled to her feet. “I’m starving,” she admitted. “And tired.”

“Go wait at Dadan’s. I won’t be long.” Ace gave a quick wave before heading towards the jungle at a jog. Kitty watched him for a second before turning back to the house. Things would be okay eventually...for now, she, Ace, and Luffy just needed to stick together.


	7. Past Come Knocking

Almost six months passed. Sabo’s absence didn’t get  _ easy  _ to deal with, exactly, but all three of them eventually found themselves smiling more readily, laughing a little longer. Even Luffy couldn’t cry forever.

Among other things that changed, Ace had become even more vigilant in protecting Kitty and Luffy. “I’m the only one without a Devil Fruit, now,” he said when Kitty complained about him being annoyingly watchful. “What happens if you both fall in the water? I gotta save both of your asses.” He was right, of course, but she still gave him grief over it on principle.

One thing that hadn’t changed, though, was Ace and Luffy’s resolution to set sail and become pirates as they each turned seventeen. While Kitty still didn’t like pirates in general, she had to admit there was a certain idealism about it that wasn’t totally unattractive. Like Ace said, it was living their own lives on their own terms, without regrets. That much at least she could agree with.

“What about you, Kitty?” Luffy asked one day. “You’re gonna set sail at seventeen too, right?”

Kitty scoffed. She hefted the river stone in her hand, reared back, and tossed it as hard as she could into the river. It skipped four, five, six times before sinking. “I’d be surprised if I were here that long.”

“It’s only, what, five years?” Ace asked. He tossed his own rock and grinned when it skipped seven times.

“Four years and two months. It’s a miracle I survived two years with you guys, never mind seven,” Kitty teased. “Just 'cause I live here right now doesn’t mean I’m gonna be registered at eighteen.”

“Ace and I are still going,” Luffy pointed out. He threw his rock; it skipped three times and he pouted. “aw, damn. What'll you do when we’re gone?”

“I...” she trailed off, frowning. “I don't know.”

The three of them were quiet for a moment before Ace spoke up. “Well, like you said, that’s four years away,” he said firmly. “Maybe your folks will be out by then and you can go home and forget you ever met us.”

“That’s ideal,” Kitty retorted, but she couldn’t hide her smile. “You’re such an asshole I’d be happy if I never saw you again.”

“Same to you,” Ace snorted.

“Noooo!” Luffy cried, tearing up automatically. “You’re not gonna forget us, are you?”

“I won’t forget  _ you, _ ” Kitty smiled, tousling Luffy’s hair. “As if I’d forget a boy made of rubber.”

Luffy giggled when she grabbed his cheek and stretched it out comically far. On his other side, Ace rolled his eyes but was smiling as well. “You promise to remember us?” Luffy asked, words distorted by his stretched cheek. “Even Ace?”

Kitty let go, and his cheek snapped back with a  _ twang.  _ “Even Ace. Promise.”

—-

Enough time had passed that Kitty almost forgot about using her lightning Devil Fruit powers during all of the chaos with the Bluejam pirates. She’d been safe from Leonardo and his mafia men for going on two years now, and there hadn’t been even a whisper of him or his men in this part of the East Blue, so it was almost easy to forget he was still after her Devil Fruit. At least until Kitty, Ace, and Luffy all were forcefully reminded.

After everything had gone down in Goa’s capital, Kitty's trips back to Makino’s house had become further and further apart, until now almost a month passed in between visits. If she were honest with herself, she was losing hope her parents would be released from prison anytime soon. Makino didn’t know the particulars, and that old man Garp hadn’t left any information or gotten back to her on it either. Kitty was tired of being left in the dark. But still, She kept hoping for a letter.

“Makino, I’m back,” Kitty called out, pushing open the back door to Makino’s place. She tossed aside her bag. “You’re not gonna believe what Luffy tried to eat yesterday. Well, you might believe it, but it’s still dumb-”

Stars exploded behind her eyes as something solid hit the back of her head with a  _ thunk,  _ and she didn’t even feel herself hit the floor.

When she came to, she was laying on some hard surface with her arms pulled painfully behind her back and the nastiest headache in the world. Kitty groaned. “Yanno what’d be great?” she mumbled. “If people’d stop knocking me out.”

“Ms. Mamakoto. Welcome back to the waking world.” Kitty looked up, squinting against the painfully bright light. A well-dressed man sat at a long, expensive looking glass table, eating lunch. He glanced down at her. “So nice of you to join us. Your parents have told me a lot about you.”

Kitty felt her stomach sink. She tugged again at the restraints on her wrists, with no effect. "Who are you?” she demanded groggily.

“Ah, forgive me.” The man stood, dabbing at his lips with a napkin, and came over. He knelt in front of her, smiling to reveal gold canines. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Leonardo.”

—-

“I miss Kittyyyy,” Luffy whined. If he were anybody else, he’d be picking apathetically at his food. As it were, he was devouring the pile of food with slightly less gusto than usual.

Ace scowled, picking at his own food as well. “Come on, she’s only been gone for a few hours. She’ll be back anytime now.”

“I know, but still." Luffy mimed shooting lightning from his hands, along with poorly done sound effects. "She’s awesome, even though she doesn’t like pirates.”

“We'll make her change her mind someday,” Ace said confidently. “We’re bad people. We’re not gonna burn down houses and murder innocent people and stuff. Kitty’s only seen shitty evil pirates, we’re gonna be regular badass pirates.”

Luffy considered this for a second. “‘Kay,” he agreed. “So long as I can still be King of the Pirates.”

“Sure,” Ace snorted. He picked up a bone from his plate and pointed it at Luffy with a grin. “If you can ever stop being a huge crybaby.”

Luffy's pout deepened. “I’m not a crybaby!”

A pounding on the door interrupted the boys. “Dadan-san! Ace-kun, Luffy-kun! I need your help!”

Dagra opened the door to reveal Makino, looking more panicked than they’d ever seen her, hair frazzled and clothes askew. Ace jumped to his feet, food forgotten. “Makino! What’s the matter?” He peeked around her. “Where’s Kitty?”

Makino’s eyes filled with tears. Ace’s heart sunk before she even opened her mouth. “They took her,” she sniffled. “They held me in the back of the bar, and when Kitty got home they knocked her out and took her away.”

“Who took her?” Ace demanded. Luffy ran over to Makino, clutching her leg and sniffling as well. “Was it Bluejam’s people?”

“I don’t know, but they took her towards the docks. Where’s Dadan-” But Ace was already gone, barely pausing to grab his pipe staff before vanishing into the jungle in the direction of Windmill Village. Makino wiped her eyes and looked down at Luffy. “I need you to find Dadan and tell her someone kidnapped Kitty at the bar,” she told him seriously, kneeling down and wiping away the tears streaking his cheeks. “Tell her they went to Windmill Village docks. I’m going to see if I can find any marines to help.”

“Okay,” Luffy sniffled. “We’re not gonna lose her like Sabo, right?”

“Oh. Oh sweetheart, no.” Makino pulled him into a tight hug. “We won’t let that happen. But we have to hurry, okay?”

Luffy aggressively wiped his eyes. “Okay! You can depend on me!” And with that, he disappeared back inside the house, hollering at the top of his little lungs, “DADAAAAAN WE NEED YOUUUUU!!”

—-

Leonardo. The head of the mafia gang which had taken her parents from her, burned down her home and farm, and now would probably kill her. Kitty was still frozen when Leonardo nodded to a man off to the side, who stepped over and pulled Kitty to her feet. The moment he grabbed her arms, she tried to pump lightning into him - only to find the power unresponsive. Leonardo tutted at her confused expression. “Sea prism stone bracelet, dear,” he admonished. “I can’t have you using - what is it, lightning? - on me or my men.”

“Are you gonna kill me?” Kitty spit out. Behind her back, she ran her fingertips blindly over the bracelet. It felt like an ordinary metal cuff, with a large round stone set into it. The moment she touched the stone, her legs went limp like noodles, and the goon holding her up had to tighten his grip. “You gonna take my Devil Fruit back?”

Did anybody know where she was? Makino knew she was supposed to come by today, and the boys knew she’d left, so eventually they’d figure out she wasn’t where she was supposed to be, but how long would that take? Would she still be alive by then? And where was she? The floor rocked slightly, telling her she was aboard a ship, but the only window to the side showed nothing but ocean all the way to the horizon. Panic flooded her veins. How long had she been out?

“I’ve considered killing you,” Leonardo mused, jerking her out of her panic-fueled spiral back into the terror-fueled present. “I’ve also considered what other uses you can be of to me.”

Kitty glared at him with all the energy she could muster, an impressive amount despite literally shaking in her boots. “Gross!”

“Ugh, nothing like  _ that _ . I’m not a good person, I admit that, but I’m not  _ evil,”  _ Leonardo said firmly. He waved a hand dismissively. “I gotta say, it was hard to find you. I knew your parents had a real Devil Fruit at some point, and when it mysteriously vanished, I knew  _ someone  _ had eaten it. When both of your parents were still able to swim, I figured it was their brat. But you’d vanished off the face of the planet. But then I heard word of a pirate group getting taken down on a neighboring island by a group of brats, one of whom had lightning Devil Fruit powers. Thanks for staying put until I could come collect you.”

“Fuck off,” Kitty spat.

Leonardo tsked. “And here I was about to offer you a way out. What would you say to working for me?”

“Seriously? You throw my parents in jail, burn down my house, stalk me, kidnap me, threaten to kill me, and now you want to  _ hire  _ me?” Kitty tugged futilely against the rope againme the henchman holding her upright tightened his grip on her arm. “Are you sure all that hair gel hadn’t rotted your brain?”

“I see you haven’t learned any manners while living in the jungle,” he said disdainfully. He stood again and returned to his seat, picking up the knife and fork again and cutting into his food. “It’s less employment and more of an informal agreement. An internship, if you will. Your part is, you hunt down five Devil Fruits for me.”

Kitty rolled her eyes, hoping the action would cover her panic. “And what do I get out of it? What if I refuse?”

“You get to keep your life and your parents’ lives. If you refuse, I’ll kill one of your parents and ask again. If you still refuse, I’ll kill the other and take your Devil Fruit myself.” Leonardo reached over to the table and plucked an apple from a bowl, tossing it idly in the air and catching it again. “I’m sure you know how  _ that _ works, at least.”

Shit. This was so much worse than she’d thought.“I don’t know how to find Devil Fruits!” Kitty blurted out. “What am I supposed to do, kill the people who ate them?”

His nasty smile widened. He picked up a knife from the table and carved a slice from the apple, eating it right off the blade. “You’re a smart girl. You’ll be creative, I’m sure.”

A knock on the door interrupted them. One of Leonardo’s cronies stuck their head in. “Hey, Leonardo, there’s-”

Leonardo flipped the knife around, grabbed the hilt in midair, and stabbed it down into the armrest of his chair. “Did I  _ say  _ I wanted to be interrupted?” he said dangerously.

The crony swallowed, eyeing the quivering knife. “Well, no, but we’re being followed by a fishing boat and they’re catching up fast.”

“A fishing boat? Shoot it down. I don’t give a damn.” Leonardo waved a dismissive hand, turning back to Kitty.

“But sir, they’re calling for you by name. There’s a loud brat and a large angry woman aboard.”

Kitty’s breath caught. Dadan and Ace had found her? Leonardo spotted her expression and grabbed her by the arm. “If they don’t piss off, there will be consequences,” he said roughly. He dragged her above deck, and sure enough, Kitty spotted the little fishing boat drawing closer, and sure enough Dadan and Luffy were aboard. She couldn’t make out their expressions, but she sure could hear them hollering obscenities at Leonardo. “Alright you peasants, I’ll give you one chance to clear off before I blast you to bits,” Leonardo shouted. “Fuck off! This isn’t your business.”

“I’m a very impatient woman, so I’m only gonna ask  _ you _ once,” Dadan shouted back. “Let her go  _ now.” _

“I could let her go right off the side of the ship,” Leonardo threatened.

“Like hell!” Kitty twisted around in time to see the other couple of goons crumple to the deck; Ace stood there, pipe staff in hand, fury in his eyes. He glanced over at Kitty, expression softening for a heartbeat before his eyes snapped back to Leonardo. “Let her go and we can forget this happened,” Ace warned, holding the pipe up to point right at Leonardo’s frustrated face.


	8. The Hanged Man

In answer to Ace’s call, Leonardo pulled a pistol from his own waistband and aimed it at Ace. “In your own words: like hell.”

Ace dodged the first shot, and the second. He wasn’t so lucky on the third. He screamed as the bullet hit his leg, and Kitty cried out as he hit the deck. “Ace! Run!” She jerked against Leonardo’s grip he kept on her arm, unsuccessfully. He just dragged her along as he stepped closer to Ace, but still outside the range of the pipe staff.

“Not so cocky now, brat?” Leonardo sneered, aiming it right at Ace’s forehead. Ace’s eyes widened as the man cocked the gun, aimed again-

The man’s back arched as lightning spat and cracked along the arm that still held Kitty upright. Unnoticed by either of them, the metal cuff with the sea prism stone clattered to the deck where she’d finally clawed it off her own wrist.

“You bitch,” Leonardo ground out between gritted teeth. Still crackling with electricity, his grip tightened on Kitty’s arm as he lifted her up and  _ pushed _ , until she felt first the outer rail of the ship and then the empty air as the ocean rushed up to greet her. Far above her, she barely saw a dark shape follow her overboard before she hit the water back-first. The grip of the ocean was even more absolute than sea prism stone, and especially with her arms tied behind her back, she sank like a rock. Despite herself, Kitty couldn’t hold her breath, and panic and water filled her lungs.

Something warm and solid grabbed her around the middle, and then she was rising - or maybe sinking further, she couldn’t tell up from down and everything was fading - and then she broke the surface. A fist hit her back hard, once, twice, and she spat up all the water, coughing and sputtering. “Don’t you dare die on me,” Ace’s voice growled in her ear. “Don’t you fucking dare.”

Kitty felt herself hauled up into something, and when she opened her eyes she was lying on the deck of the tiny fishing boat, arms still pinned uncomfortably behind her. Far above her loomed Leonardo’s boat, and she could hear crashes and shouts. “Ace?” Kitty panted.

“Escape first, talk later,” Ace said tightly. He and Luffy worked the oars, moving the almost certainly stolen boat as fast as they could back towards the island off towards the horizon.

“Ace, your leg.”

“I know, I’ll fix it later.” he snapped. Blood still leaked from his thigh, staining the boards with blood. Kitty shuddered on the deck, whether from cold or leftover adrenaline she couldn’t tell. Ace glanced at her, expression softening. “We’ll take care of you once we’re safe. Dadan is keeping them distracted so they won’t follow us,” he explained, a little more gently.

“Is Dadan gonna be okay?” Luffy asked worriedly. “She’s taking on all those guys alone…”

“She’s a tough old bat. She’ll be fine,” Ace answered, but his expression didn’t match the confidence of his words.

It took a while, but the boat finally was pulled ashore in one of the island’s little coves, and carefully hidden behind some rocks and bushes. Ace bandaged up his leg, while Luffy tried to undo the rope around Kitty’s wrists. A minute later she was free, rubbing the indents in her skin.

“Are you alright? Did that bastard do anything to you?” Ace asked. Kitty shook her head. Despite her best attempts to hold her composure, she could feel tears filling her eyes and a lump coming up in her throat. His frown deepened. “No you’re not okay, or no he didn’t do a-”

She flung herself at both boys, wrapping her arms around their necks and inadvertently knocking their skulls together as she finally burst into tears. Ace stiffened in surprise. “I w-was so sc-scared!” she wailed. “He said he was gonna kill me! He said he-”

Just as suddenly as she’d grabbed them, Kitty pulled away.

“He’s gonna kill my parents,” she blurted out, looking back and forth between them in panic. “He’ll kill them if I didn’t agree to work for him, I have to go back-”

“Slow down,” Ace ordered, grabbing her by the shoulders. “Take a breath. We’re not gonna let him kill your parents. Promise.”

Beside them, Luffy nodded in agreement. “Yeah! We’ll keep you  _ and  _ them safe!” he said firmly.

Kitty took a ragged breath, rubbing at her eyes. “How?” she said miserably.

“I don’t know yet. But we’ll think of something.” Ace shifted a bit, grimacing as he adjusted his hurt leg. “Shit. Plans were always Sabo’s thing...but we’ll figure it out.”

“Guess we can’t just ask him to forget about all this?” Luffy asked halfheartedly. Kitty shook her head, wiping away the last stray tears.

“I don’t think so. He said he’d kill them and me, and I believe him,” she said somberly.

Ace scratched his chin thoughtfully. “What if we kill him first?” he said slowly.

Kitty frowned. “Do you think we’d be able to? It didn’t go so well just now,” she said, giving Ace’s bandaged leg a pointed look.

“I could beat him up,” Luffy offered. He lifted his clenched fists and punched at the air. “With my fists like pistols!”

“That...actually might work,” Kitty said thoughtfully.

Ace shot her a look. “Luffy can’t hit a tree, never mind an angry mafia boss with a gun.”

“Hey!”

“He doesn’t have to hit him, but he could act like a shield,” Kitty explained. She reached over and grabbed Luffy’s cheek, stretching it out before letting it snap back into place. “You’re bulletproof, remember?” she said to Luffy. “You could do your balloon thing and keep him from shooting us, so we can get close enough to get him.”

Luffy was nodding along, but Ace still looked doubtful. “And what about the other goonies? They’ll have guns too, and Luffy can only block so much with that teeny little body.”

Luffy’s pout increased. “I’m not that small! I’ve grown a whole inch this year!”

Kitty sighed in frustration. “Maybe we could ask Dadan for help?” she offered. “She could beat up some of those guys for us…”

“Makino said she was gonna see if she could find some Marines to help,” Luffy added.

“Marines will probably just chase him away,” Ace pointed out. He watched with a thoughtful frown as Kitty stood and began pacing. She only listened halfway as Ace and Luffy talked. Her wet shoes squished across the rocky sand, and again she cursed Leonardo for tossing her overboard, among other things. She had to figure out some way to keep her parents safe, and fast.

Her step faltered as the realization popped up. Oh no. This idea would probably work, but it would  _ hurt _ . “Ace, Luffy,” Kitty interrupted. “I know what to do.”

“Yeah? What is it?” Ace and Luffy perked up, staring attentively. Inwardly, she groaned. No time to waste. Still, she had to take a second to steel her nerves before speaking.

“Luffy, I need you to make sure Makino is okay. Ace, I need you to go to Dadan’s house and get my pipe staff that Sabo gave be. I mean, if you can walk.” She glanced at Ace’s bandaged leg. It had stopped bleeding, at least, but was clearly still painful.

He stood with a grunt, as did Luffy. “I’ll be fine. What’re you going to do?”

Kitty turned back to the sea. Leonardo’s ship was still visible, far out from shore. She had to be quick if this was going to work. “I’m going to get ready to tell Leonardo to go to hell,” she answered. She turned and gave the boys an attempt at a confident grin, but it faltered when Ace grabbed her wrist.

“You’re not about to do something stupid, are you?” he said bluntly. Beside him, Luffy frowned as well, fidgeting anxiously with his straw hat.

Kitty tugged her wrist free. “Nothing you wouldn’t do. Trust me, okay? I’ll see you soon.” She gestured for them to leave, shooing them towards the jungle. “Hurry up! We need to do this before he leaves!”

Ace gave her one last searching look before disappearing into the jungle with Luffy close behind. Kitty sighed in relief, waited a second to make sure they were really gone, and began pushing the little fishing boat back onto the ocean.

A few short minutes later, Kitty stood on the deck of Leonardo’s ship, hands bound one more and her heart in her throat. Leonardo himself stood before her, disheveled and furious. “What the fuck is the big idea, kid?” he spat. “I had to deal with that guard dog of a woman until she finally jumped overboard and swam away, and now you’re back here?” He pulled a gun from his waist and leveled it at Kitty’s forehead, cocking it. She kept her eyes on Leonardo’s face, doing her best to fight back the fear-induced nausea.

“I surrender,” Kitty said evenly. “I agree to your terms; I’ll hunt Devil Fruits for you.”

—-

How could he have been so  _ stupid?? _

Ace knelt on the rough floorboards of Dadan’s house, his vision blurred with unshed tears he refused to let fall and his throat raw from yelling. Clenched in his fist he held a balled scrap of paper, a letter from Kitty that had arrived less than an hour after Leonardo’s ship had disappeared with Kitty aboard. A goodbye letter. _ ‘I’m going to work for him like he offered, and find Devil Fruits for him to get my parents free,’  _ it said.  _ ‘This way, you guys are safe. I’m sorry, Ace, Luffy, Makino. Thanks for being good to me even when I was rude and didn’t deserve it. Ace, I’m sorry you got shot for me. If you forgive me, when you set sail at 17...come find me.’  _ He would’ve snorted if his rage wasn’t choking him from the inside out. Forgive  _ her _ for getting shot? What the hell was there to forgive? Leonardo was the evil mafia fucker, not her. And she was with him, who knows where, and he couldn’t do  _ shit _ to help her. The thought made his stomach clench painfully.

“Why d-did she l-l-leave?” Luffy mumbled, voice thick with the tears he’d been shedding for the past hour. “I thought we were gonna help her!” Beside him, Dogra sniffled as well, and patted Luffy on the head.

“She did what she thought she had to,” Dogra said quietly. His own eyes were red-rimmed to match Luffy’s, as were the rest of the mountain bandits.

Across the room, Dadan snorted bitterly. “This is Sabo all over again,” she growled. She pulled out a cigarette and lit it, taking a long drag. “Self-sacrificing little shits. She’s gonna get herself killed too.”

“Shut the hell up!” Ace leapt to his feet, face twisted in fury. “She’s not gonna die!”

“Listen, kid, shit happens and people die!” Dadan shot back, jabbing her cigarette at him. “I don’t like it but we gotta be realistic! I ain’t gonna sugar-coat it for ya. If you keep hoping for a miracle you’re just gonna be disappointed.”

Ace wasn’t listening anymore; he turned and ran out the door, still holding Kitty’s letter. Stupid, stupid, stupid, how could he have been so stupid to leave her behind? He’d known what was at stake! He’d seen the exact same thing play out with Sabo, why hadn’t he seen this coming?

Soon enough, Ace found himself at the cliff overlook again. The sea far below was deceptively calm, and the horizon was unbroken by any ships. His friend was beyond there, somewhere, and he couldn’t help her. Helpless,  _ again _ . He sat, breathing hard. Was it really just six months ago that he’d sat here, holding another farewell letter, grieving another friend lost? Kitty wasn’t dead - he refused to believe that - but god, it hurt just the same. As a sob finally wrenched itself out of his throat, Ace resolved himself. He  _ would  _ get stronger, he  _ would  _ set sail, and he  _ would  _ find Kitty and set her free forever, even if he died trying.


End file.
